Towards a Cosmopolitan Political Thought: The Hermeneutics of Interpreting the Other

Abstract

The emergence of the field of comparative political theory suggests that the encounter with non-Western texts be considered a legitimate and necessary part of political theory, so that the field is reconstituted in a truly cosmopolitan manner. However, this also presents unique challenges to political theorists. Chief among these is the question of what hermeneutic approach would allow us to understand well the ideas contained in these texts. This essay will argue for a particular approach to the interpretation of non-Western texts and ideas, providing an account of a methodologically self-conscious approach to comparative political theory. A serious comparative political theorist will inevitably have to alternate between an internal immersion in the lived experience of the text, and an external stance of commentary and exegesis of the text. Struggling with the conflicting imperatives of these moments is precisely the task of a more nuanced approach to comparative political theory. Ultimately, however, I also argue that this particular approach has implications for the development of a genuine cosmopolitanism in the field of political theory. A cosmopolitan political theory is precisely one in which such struggles and complex encounters with the otherness of texts are increasingly made available to provoke, dislocate, and challenge our own understandings of political life. The method I offer is thus deeply implicated in the evolution of our selfunderstanding as political theorists.

Institutions, Ideologies, and Comparative Political Theory

“…Farah Godrej (2009; has deepened these arguments, incorporating insights from postcolonial and poststructuralist philosophy that reinforce Gadamer's emphasis on reflexively accounting for one's own background and prejudices in encounters with unfamiliar intellectual traditions. Godrej recommends that comparative political theorists adopt a "hermeneutic of existential understanding," which acknowledges that "the ideas in a text cannot simply be understood by an analysis of the concepts in the text itself; rather [understanding] requires a praxis-oriented existential transformation in which the reader herself learns to live by the very ideas expressed in a text" (2009,140).…”

Beyond compare? Free market Islamism as ideology

“…26 For a 'cosmopolitan' political theorists like Godrej who has argued for a "a hermeneutic of existential understanding" rather than "objective" comparisons between cultures or traditions, there can be no positive ideological synthesis between neoliberal economics and Islam. 27 Consequently, libertarian Islamists fall beyond such analytical frames of reference and focus.…”

Komplementäre Perspektiven? Was politische Kulturforschung und transkulturelle Politische Theorie voneinander lernen können

“…Andererseits diente der Begriff der Kultur als Angelpunkt zur Dezentrierung sowie zur Kosmopolitisierung einer als gefährlich eurozentrisch verstandenen Politischen Theorie (vgl. Pantham 1983;Dallmayr 1997;Jenco 2012;Godrej 2009). Das Ziel des damit verfolgten Ansatzes bestand bislang im weitesten Sinne darin, kulturelle Differenz als produktive Irritationsquelle für die Entwicklung politischer Ideen und Theorien zu nutzen.…”

“…In diesem Fall ist eine Untersuchung des Zusammenhangs von beidem mit einer Mischung aus ethnologischen und politiktheoretischen Methoden denkbar (vgl. Godrej 2009), zugleich jedoch gibt es hier die Möglichkeit einer methodischen Annäherung an die politische Kulturforschung, da die quantitative Erfassung von Orientierungsmustern ebenfalls sinnvoll ist. Ein Vorteil besteht hier zudem darin, dass nicht eine diffuse nationale Kultur oder ein Kulturraum untersucht wird, sondern eine soziale Einheit, die tatsächlich auch zur Transmission von Kultur im hier verstandenen Sinne beiträgt, sodass die Unterstellung einer gewissen Homogenität auch theoretisch gerechtfertigt erscheint.…”